Police and court briefs

Bond set at $10M for Elyria man

A judge has set a $10 million bond for an Elyria man accused of killing his ex-girlfriend.

During a preliminary hearing July 27, Elyria Municipal Court Judge Lisa Locke Graves set the bond for Roy Owens Jr., 56, and requested Owens undergo a competency examination to determine his mental health status, according to Lorain County Prosecutor Dennis Will.

The evaluation, scheduled for next month, was requested by Owens’ defense attorney Doug Merrill after suicide allegations arose about Owens, Will said.

Police have said Owens tried to kill himself by placing a dull knife to his neck, and across his wrists when he was found in Darke County.

Owens also tried killing himself while in police custody, Will said.

Owens is facing aggravated murder for the death of 56-year-old Linnea Satterfied.

On July 19, Owens was arrested by the Darke County Sheriff’s Office after he crashed his gold, four-door 2001 Buick LeSabre in a ditch on state Route 49 in Greenville.

When police searched Owens’ car, they discovered a body in the trunk, believed to be Satterfield.

Coroner: Man’s death ruled suicide

The death of a man whose body was found on the North Coast Inland Trail was ruled a suicide, said Lorain County Coroner Dr. Stephen Evans.

The man was 39 and the cause of death was asphyxiation by hanging, Evans said.

The man’s body was found the morning of July 27 along the trail near the intersection with Butternut Ridge Road.

Late July 28, the coroner’s office would not release the man’s identity because his family had not yet been notified, Evans said.

It appeared the man did not have any close family members in the immediate area, so notification was delayed on July 28, Evans said.

Head of snake cut to stop attack

Sheffield Lake firefighters saved a 45-year-old woman from being attacked by her pet snake July 27.

Shortly before 2 p.m., police received a call about a boa constrictor wrapped around a woman’s neck and biting her face in the 4000 block of Lake Road, according to Lt. Wes Mariner.

Upon arrival, firefighters had to cut the snake’s head off because of where the reptile was located, Mariner said.

The snake was disposed of at Sheffield Lake Fire Station.

The woman, whose name authorities did not release, was transported to the hospital with nonlife threatening injuries.